Kabwe Solar SADC cross-border
High confidence operational Last researched: 2026-06-26
| Capacity | 100 MWac / ~130.0 MWdc (DC estimated from AC) |
|---|---|
| Location | Central Province (Kabwe), Zambia (coordinates approximate) From Wikipedia 'Chisamba Solar Power Plant' (14 36 36 S, 28 35 24 E). Site is in Chisamba District, Central Province. Wikipedia coordinate is approximate site placement. |
| Developer | PowerChina International Group (powerchina-intl.com · LinkedIn) |
| Owner / equity | ZESCO via subsidiary Kariba North Bank Extension Power Corporation (KNBEPC / Knepc) |
| EPC / contractor | PowerChina International Group (powerchina-intl.com · LinkedIn) |
| Offtaker | First Quantum Minerals (FQM), under a ~13-year PPA arranged/intermediated by GreenCo Power Services |
| Regulatory route | private wheeling / merchant-SAPP (utility-developed plant selling via GreenCo PPA to private mining offtaker FQM, not a public REIPPPP-style tender) |
| Key dates | Construction start: 2024-07; Commissioning / COD: 2025-05 |
| Distance from Mokopane | ~1,067 km straight-line |
We are still confirming the following for this site:
- DC nameplate capacity (MWdc), separate from the AC figure
- Soil / geotechnical conditions (pile-refusal risk)
- Site decision-maker contacts (needs Apollo upgrade or Clay)
Sources
- https://en.powerchina.cn/2025-05/27/c_828949.htm (2026-06-26)
- PowerChina: launches Zambia's largest single PV project (Kabwe 100MW) (2025-05-27)
- PowerChina: Zambia's largest solar power plant breaks ground (Kabwe 100MW PV) (2024-02-02)
- pv magazine: Zambia completes 100 MW solar farm (Chisamba; FQM offtake via GreenCo; Stanbic-led finance) (2025-05-26)
- Wikipedia: Chisamba Solar Power Plant (coordinates, KNBEPC owner, GreenCo/FQM PPA) (2025)
- SolarQuarter: Zambia Inaugurates Landmark 100 MW Kabwe Solar Project Built by POWERCHINA (2025-05-30)
Research notes
Described as Zambia's largest single PV project; broke ground Feb 2025. Single-source. CONFIRMED EXISTS - high confidence, multiple independent sources (PowerChina, pv-magazine, Wikipedia, SolarQuarter, CGTN, State House Zambia). NAMING / IDENTITY: PowerChina markets this as the "Kabwe 100MW Solar Project," but the actual site is in CHISAMBA District, Central Province (not Kabwe town itself - Kabwe is the nearby provincial capital). Same plant as the "Chisamba Solar Power Plant." Treat Kabwe Solar = Chisamba Solar Power Plant. It is ZESCO's first solar project and described as Zambia's largest single grid-connected PV plant. STATUS CORRECTION vs seed: Seed said status=construction. This is WRONG - the plant was COMPLETED/grid-connected and inaugurated by President Hichilema around 20-30 May 2025. Status is now OPERATIONAL. DATE CORRECTION vs seed: Seed said "broke ground Feb 2025." Sources conflict: PowerChina's own release dates the groundbreaking to 1 Feb 2024 (not 2025); Wikipedia/pv-magazine cite construction start ~July 2024 (with some sources saying June 2024). The Feb-2025 seed date appears to be a misread of the Feb-2024 groundbreaking. Recorded construction_start as 2024-07 (Wikipedia, the most precise corroborated figure) but flag the Feb-2024 PowerChina groundbreaking and June-2024 variant. Commissioning ~May 2025 (grid connection / inauguration); some PowerChina material references June 2025 for full handover. CAPACITY: 100 MW consistently reported as AC. No source gives a separate DC (MWdc) nameplate - left null, do NOT invent. Annual yield ~180 GWh, ~150,000 households. OWNER/FINANCE: Owned by ZESCO through subsidiary Kariba North Bank Extension Power Corporation (KNBEPC/Knepc). Total cost ~US$100m; ZESCO and KNBEPC each put ~US$30m equity, remaining ~70% via a loan led by Stanbic Bank Zambia. PowerChina is EPC/contractor (and ran the build), NOT the equity owner - seed's developer="PowerChina" is correct only as EPC/contractor. OFFTAKER: Power sold under a ~13-year PPA via GreenCo Power Services, supplied primarily to First Quantum Minerals (FQM, a copper miner). This is effectively a private/merchant arrangement (utility-built asset, intermediary trader GreenCo, private mining offtaker) rather than a REIPPPP-style public tender. NOT REIPPPP (that is a South African programme). INFRASTRUCTURE: 100 MW PV + 33/132 kV step-up substation + 2.7 km double-circuit 132 kV line + existing-substation expansion. ~66,000 spiral/screw piles installed (relevant to geotech but no explicit soil/pile-refusal data given). A second 100 MW phase at the same site is planned. STORAGE: No BESS mentioned in any source - storage left null. GEO: Wikipedia gives 14 36 36 S, 28 35 24 E (approx -14.61, 28.59) in Chisamba District. Marked approximate - it is a Wikipedia placement, not a surveyed plant centroid. NO unresolved factual conflict on the core (100 MW AC, PowerChina EPC, ZESCO/KNBEPC owner, FQM/GreenCo offtake, 2025 commissioning) - hence high confidence. The only soft conflicts are the construction-start month (Feb 2024 groundbreaking vs Jul 2024 start) and the Kabwe-vs-Chisamba naming, both explained above. VERIFY: VERIFIED operational (high confidence). Existence, 100 MW capacity, PowerChina (EPC), ZESCO/KNBEPC (owner/developer), GreenCo+FQM 13-yr PPA offtake, and ~July 2024 construction start / May-June 2025 commissioning all independently corroborated across pv-magazine, PowerChina, Wikipedia, engineeringnews.co.za, SolarQuarter, ESI-Africa. Kabwe Solar = Chisamba Solar Power Plant (Chisamba District, Central Province). PRIOR REFUTATION OF SEED PRESERVED: seed's 'broke ground Feb 2025' and status=construction were wrong - groundbreaking was 1 Feb 2024, plant is now OPERATIONAL (inaugurated by Pres. Hichilema May-June 2025). CAVEATS: (1) all sources say '100 MW' generically; none explicitly designate AC vs DC, so mw_ac:100 is an inference and mw_dc is genuinely unknown (kept null, do not invent). (2) geo coords are a single-source Wikipedia site placement, approximate only - retained but flagged, not surveyed. (3) Exact commissioning day unsettled (May 20 launch vs June 2025 vs June 30 inauguration) but all within May-June 2025. No field rises to the level of being refuted/dropped. CONFLICTS: Capacity is reported as '100 MW' generically across all sources (pv-magazine, PowerChina, Wikipedia, engineeringnews, SolarQuarter); none explicitly label it 'AC'. The overlay's mw_ac:100 is a reasonable assumption but the AC-vs-DC distinction is not actually stated by any source. mw_dc correctly left null. ; Commissioning/inauguration date varies by source: PowerChina/SolarQuarter cite a May 20 2025 launch; pv-magazine and Wikipedia say June 2025 commissioning; a separate PowerChina release cites a June 30 2025 presidential inauguration in Kabwe. All fall in May-June 2025 (no material conflict), but the exact commissioning day is unsettled. ; Construction-start month: PowerChina's own release dates the groundbreaking to Feb 1 2024; Wikipedia/pv-magazine cite July 2024 as construction start. The overlay records 2024-07 and flags the Feb-2024 groundbreaking - consistent, not contradictory. ; Geo coordinates derive solely from Wikipedia's site placement (-14.60992772, 28.59003929), not a surveyed plant centroid; overlay rounds to -14.61/28.59 and self-flags as approximate. Single-source and approximate. ; Naming: PowerChina markets it as 'Kabwe Solar' but the site is in Chisamba District; same plant as 'Chisamba Solar Power Plant'. Confirmed, not a true conflict. ; Seed note's 'broke ground Feb 2025' and status=construction are both REFUTED by sources: groundbreaking was Feb 2024, plant is now OPERATIONAL (commissioned/inaugurated May-June 2025).
Bidding or building this site? A 12-week rig import lead-time can sink a programme. Drillbuilders has JCS500 solar piling rigs in stock now in Mokopane — no import wait.
Reserve a JCS500 for the Kabwe Solar programme JCS500 full specs →Planning intel compiled from open-source data — not a tender document. Suggest a correction or add missing info →